Pitching with the family in mind

Former Bulldogs pitcher Amanda Scott signed to play professional softball and will be joined by her sister Courtney on the New York/New Jersey Juggernaut

By Zack Walton

Amanda Scott is driven by passion and love to play softball.

But it’s not passion or love for the sport that drives her to pursue a professional career— it’s the passion to take the field alongside her sister and the love that the two of them share.

Scott, a former four-time NCAA first-team All-American pitcher at Fresno State, recently signed a contract to play with the New York/New Jersey Juggernaut—one of the eight teams in the new National Pro Fastpitch league.

Scott attributes her interest in playing in the women’s softball league to the fact her sister Courtney will be a member of the same team.

“ I’m very excited to play with my sister,” Scott said. “About 99 percent of the reasoning behind playing [in the professional softball league] is because she will be there; it will be a great opportunity.”

A former Clovis High standout, Scott played her senior season along side her sister—who was a freshman—before going to college, and said she has thought about the two of them sharing a dugout again ever since.

The Scott sisters went to different schools to pursue their collegiate careers—as Amanda became a Bulldog and Courtney played at California. But the two shared similar success—both becoming members of a national championship team and both earning All-American honors. And now, they both become members of the Juggernaut.

Though, after graduating from Fresno State in 2000, Scott had decided playing softball was not something she wanted to do.

“I no longer had the drive to play,” Scott said. “I was done with the sport and had felt like I played long enough. After I finished my career at Fresno State, I never thought I would play again.”

A surprising statement for an athlete who set new standards for achieving greatness on the softball diamond.

For four years, Scott assaulted would-be hitters—as well as the record books—leaving in her wake, a trail of disappointed batters and statistical lists littered with her name.

Scott graces not only the Fresno State record book, but also the Western Athletic Conference’s and NCAA’s.

She also is the recipient of a plethora of awards and distinctions, including one of the most prestigious honors that can be given to a collegiate athlete—the NCAA Top VIII Award, which is given to the top eight senior student-athletes at any college level who demonstrated outstanding achievements in athletics, academics, character, leadership and activities.

A brief look at some of her other accomplishments includes:

• Leading Fresno State to the 1998 NCAA title (the university’s first Division I team title in any sport)

• Two-time Fresno State and WAC female athlete of the year

• Two-time All-College World Series Team—1998 MVP

• Two-time NCAA individual ERA champion

• A career record of 106-18 with 68 shutouts, 10 saves, 871.0 IP, 851 strikeouts and a 0.55 ERA.

And that’s just a brief list of the many achievements throughout her collegiate career, which earned her a No. 2 spot on the Top 25 list of the Central Valley’s Greatest Athletes of the 20th Century, as voted by fans.

“ I felt as though I had accomplished everything I wanted to achieve in my career,” Scott said. “I thought it was a good time to move on and get a real job—and start my life.”

Scott is currently in her second season as an assistant softball coach with Michigan State, after working as an editorial and production intern for the Women’s Sports Foundation and as a softball analyst for ESPN radio and AT&T/Media One Television.

After graduating from Fresno State with a degree in Communication, Scott began working on her graduate degree at Michigan State, while teaching those who are in the same position she was only a few years ago.

Scott began playing softball after constant exposure to baseball fields because of her father, who is in his 14th season as Fresno City College baseball coach. She said her mother used to always drive her and her sister around to practices—and Amanda practiced with one of the best.

Since age nine, Scott practiced with local softball legend Leroy Zimmerman, learning about pitching and life.

“ Mr. Zimmerman taught me so much—to work hard and practice hard,” Scott said. “He was a good person, with a good soul. He just believed in the basics.”

Those basics, which were instilled in Scott, took her talents and set her apart from all of those she faced.

“ I remember being nine years old, and going to learn to pitch from this man who was in his 60s for no charge. I would just have to rake the pit in the backyard after I was done.” Scott said. “He would be sitting in his chair watching me pitch and he made me so strong and gave me such confidence. I used to always say ‘I need my Mr. Z fix.’”

“ I adored him—he was such a pillar—I listened to everything he had to say and ate out of his hand,” Scott said, with a choked-up reclamation. “He taught me the mental game, which I always thought was my biggest strength.”

Scott has taken her mental game and moved it into coaching, serving as a mentor to the Michigan State pitching staff. Scott has gained a new perspective by being on the outside looking in and enjoys her new spot in the stadium.

“ I laugh all the time because I think ‘I’m so sorry for how I acted towards my coaches,’” Scott said. “It is frustrating sometimes coaching because things are out of your hands; you can’t go out there and play. But I get to influence someone’s life everyday. I could do this for a while.”

For now, Scott will have to put her coaching career on hold. As of May 17, she and the rest of the women of NPF report to spring training, for the league’s inaugural season.

“ I’m going into this season, seeing how the year goes,” Scott said. “I’m just excited about the experience and opportunity.

Scott may not have to worry about whether she wants a career in playing softball, or in coaching it. The NPF does not have history on its side when it comes to the chance of the league surviving.

Professional softball leagues have been attempted in the past—never once lasting more than a few years.

In 1976, the International Women’s Professional Softball Association was formed and folded four years later. The league, which was founded by former LPGA Tour member Janie Blaylock, softball legend Joan Joyce and women’s tennis icon Billie Jean King, originally featured 10 teams across the nation—later expanding into Canada.

The fledgling league lasted until 1980, when lack of money, high travel costs and inadequate facilities forced the league to shut down.

Another league began in 1997, when the Women’s Professional Softball League opened with six teams. The league experienced much of the same problems and was suspended indefinitely after the 2000 season.

Scott, who has not played competitively since her last pitch at Fresno State, is positive about women’s professional softball getting another chance.

“ I’m optimistic about the way things are being done this time around,” Scott said. “The talent level is amazing and the competition will be unbelievable.”

Scott also feels there are many differences with this league that will prove beneficial in the attempt to survive. She highlights the increasing interest in softball nationally over the past few years, a contract to televise games, the Olympics and the fact that there is no more women’s soccer league, as reasons the for the NPF to succeed.

But the biggest reason, according to Scott, is each of the teams are individually owned—just as Major League Baseball teams are. This way, teams can be run individually instead of each team being controlled by the league.

Scott also said she believes that the league she is now a member of will be able to be successful, when other associations like it have failed, because of behind-the-scene stories—such as the one of her and her sister.

“ There are several stories about women in our league that will raise interest in our sport,” Scott said. “With the players we have, all we have to do is get the fans hooked first, then we reel them in.”